Govt priority to help stranded Malaysians fly home

2026-03-08 - 00:03

The government will facilitate the return of stranded Malaysians via available commercial flights, the foreign ministry said. (Bernama pic) PETALING JAYA: The government is giving priority to helping Malaysians stranded in the Middle East to return by commercial flights, the foreign ministry said. Wisma Putra said 649 Malaysians are reportedly stranded across several locations in the region because of the US-Israeli war on Iran. So far, 24,568 Malaysians have registered with the ministry’s online consular system. Separately, the higher education ministry said evacuation plans for Malaysian students were ready and could be activated at any time. There are 1,762 Malaysian students in Jordan, 135 in Saudi Arabia, 21 in the United Arab Emirates, nine in Kuwait, six in Iran, and three in Qatar. Wisma Putra said the Cabinet had approved a contingency evacuation plan should the regional security situation deteriorate. “The government’s priority is assisting Malaysians stranded by travel disruptions and facilitating their return via available commercial flights,” it said. Malaysia Airlines said it would resume flights to Jeddah and Madinah today, but flights to Doha remain suspended until March 13. Wisma Putra said the number of stranded Malaysians in Oman had fallen from 190 to five, while 246 in Dubai have departed, leaving 176 Malaysians on the UAE mission’s active list. “In Abu Dhabi, 25 Malaysians remain stranded while five have departed,” it said. No Malaysians are currently stranded in Bahrain, although 105 have registered for voluntary evacuation, while 243 Malaysians remain stranded in Saudi Arabia, mostly umrah pilgrims.